When Roland and Jocelyn have a fight, Jocelyn tells him she needs her space. So he seeks refuge at the motel, where he creates havoc for the Roses. David is “offended” by Roland’s collection of undershirts hanging outside his motel room, and Johnny and Moira have their own fight over “needing space.” Even Alexis decides she needs her own space and checks out an apartment in “Lower SC.”

This is an episode about relationships and the frustrations that can happen when living in close – or even not so close – quarters, and how (in the words of Johnny Rose) our loved ones can “push every button” we ever had.

Johnny and Jocelyn work through their respective frustrations together, and Moira and Roland do the same. Their style of communication is a bit more down and dirty than Johnny’s or Jocelyn’s, but in the end they also help each other work through their frustrations and come to a place of forgiveness.

Alexis doesn’t take the apartment after hearing that someone killed themselves in it, and in his twisted brotherly way, David says, “I can almost guarantee you that someone’s killed themselves in this [motel] room.”

I enjoyed this episode. It was funny and sweet while showing another side of human nature. A side that can sometimes be a bit bitchy. And no one does bitchy better than Moira and David.

It’s no wonder that this show and this cast dominated the Canadian Screen Awards.

“Those two are not as simple minded as we thought.” This was Moira to Johnny after Roland and Jocelyn brought them “table scraps” from the party they hosted to raise support and funding for Jocelyn’s campaign.

Moira will not be outdone by the likes of them. She asks Ronnie if she will support her, saying, “I want you to put your weight behind me – your political weight…(awkward pause)…I now realize ‘clout’ was the word I was looking for.” It might not seem funny when you read it, but watching Moira is very funny. It’s all in the delivery. There are great lines in this show, but the delivery is what makes it.

Ronnie agrees to host a party and tells Moira she has a chance to get a key demographic on her side. For most of the evening Moira assumed the demographic was “women without husbands.” She finds out just before giving her campaign speech that the demographic is entrepreneurs. Watching her replace the word “lesbian” with “business” from her speech is entertaining.

Meanwhile, David gets stuck babysitting his boss’ stepdaughter. We see him outside the motel walking towards the office to talk to Stevie about it. He’s wearing black pants with big pink flowers. Not something you see every day. In the last episode he was wearing white gloves at work, much like someone working with priceless art would wear. It’s attention to details like these that paint a picture of the character. Subtle and brilliant.

Alexis has also joined the working force. Her start at the vet clinic was a bit rocky, but in the end she did manage to contribute. It seems that all of the Roses are stepping out and taking part in their new community.

This show gets stronger every week. This episode was brilliant. I could not stop giggling.

Moira thinks Jocelyn has found the “tasteful nude photos” of her youth and is horrified that she uncovered them in the “middle of a political campaign.” She asks Stevie to search the Internet and find them. And when she doesn’t find them, she goes to David, explaining, “Darling, I’m afraid that you and I have arrived at an awkward moment in our relationship.” Poor David. He needs to search the Internet for nude pictures of his mother.

Later that day, Johnny asks David if he can borrow money. He apologizes for the awkwardness of the situation. David says, “Believe it or not, this is not the most awkward parent-son request I’ve gotten today.” Dan Levy is fantastic in this episode. He is a very physical actor. His body movements and facial expressions convey so much. It reminds me of the actors from silent movies. Charlie Chaplin would have been impressed.

Unfortunately David can’t find the nude photos either, but Stevie has found some “incriminating” photos of Moira with would-be murders. No nudes though. Well, unless you count the one where Moira’s face has been put on the body of what Moira assumes is “an Indonesian lady boy.”

Moira is actually upset that the photos are gone — and with them her youth and her “firm” body. She tells Stevie to take a thousand pictures of herself, telling her not to think that she is too spooky or that people won’t want to see those small breasts. No one but Moira could or would say say these things. She is so outrageous and so self-centred that she has lost her humanness and her sensitivity. Is that what too much money does to a person?

There are other great scenes in this episode — Johnny and Alexis have some great lines. Episode 9 gets two thumbs up from me.

This week, after Johnny drinks Bob’s milk he finds out it was raw milk and the cost to replace it is a lot more than pasteurized milk. He starts thinking he might get some of his own and sell it. The only problem is it’s illegal to sell raw milk in Canada and many US states.

Some of the interactions that follow over the raw milk are farcical – Johnny could easily be trying to sell drugs instead of milk. In fact, it might be easier for him to sell drugs. As Alexis points out, “it’s fast easy money and no one would suspect you.”

The issue of selling raw milk in Canada is very much on a level of selling drugs. That’s what makes this work. People in other parts of the world where raw milk is legal wouldn’t find this funny. It would seem too ridiculous; and raw milk in Canada has bordered on the ridiculous.

Meanwhile, Moira is busy campaigning for the upcoming election. When she finds out David has helped her competition (Jocelyn) pick out a new outfit, she’s not happy.

The scene where she confronts David is typical of the interaction between these two drama queens sparring. Her comment that Jocelyn’s outfit looked like it belonged on an aging airline stewardess strikes a nerve with David who says, “I told her not to wear the jacket with the skirt.”

He goes on to say that he felt very conflicted, but Moira isn’t buying it. In her droll melodramatic voice she says, “Now will you be a doll and fetch mommy a knife – you’ll find one lodged in my back.” This round goes to Moira.

I’ve come to expect great acting and great writing from this show. I wasn’t disappointed.